USB alliance finalizes 10Gbps specification as USB 3.1

USB alliance finalizes 10Gbps specification as USB 3.1

The USB 3.0 Promoter Group teased us with the prospect of a 10Gbps USB standard back in January, and it now has something to show for its work: the alliance has finalized its specification under the USB 3.1 name. While little has changed with the port format in half a year's time, its completion lets AMD, Intel and others start work on chipsets that offer twice the bandwidth of USB 3.0 while preserving support for USB 2.0. There's no public roadmap for the first USB 3.1 devices, although the first related developer sessions will begin on August 21st. Not that the Promoter Group is necessarily in a rush -- while Intel's Thunderbolt 2 will hit an even quicker 20Gbps this year, the new USB format is more likely to receive broad support.

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SuperSpeed USB 10 Gbps – Ready for Development

USB 3.0 Promoter Group announced availability of the USB 3.1 Specification to increaseSuperSpeed USB to 10 Gbps

HILLSBORO, Ore. – July 31, 2013 – The USB 3.0 Promoter Group today announced thecompletion of the USB 3.1 Specification which adds enhancements to enable SuperSpeedUSB to operate at up to 10 Gbps. This latest release of the specification will be availabletoday for download from the USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF) website.

Developers interested in implementing the new USB 3.1 Specification have the opportunityto learn technical details during three developer conferences currently being planned. Theinternational conferences planned in Europe and Asia will offer more advanced systemdesign training as breakout sessions on the second day. For more details and conferenceregistration instructions, please visit the USB-IF website.

1. USB 3.1 Developers Day US – August 21, 2013 in Hillsboro, Ore.2. USB 3.1 Developers Days Europe – October 1-2, 2013 in Dublin, Ireland3. USB 3.1 Developers Days Asia – Two day conference scheduled for early December2013, more details to follow

"The USB 3.1 specification primarily extends existing USB 3.0 protocol and hub operationfor speed scaling along with defining the next higher physical layer speed as 10 Gbps," saidBrad Saunders, USB 3.0 Promoter Group Chairman. "The specification team worked hard tomake sure that the changes made to support higher speeds were limited and remainedconsistent with existing USB 3.0 architecture to ease product development."

"We recognize this advancement in USB technology is an important development for ourcustomers," said Tom Bonola, Chief Technology Officer, Business PC Solutions, HP. "TheUSB 3.1 Specification enables us to meet the growing needs of our customers for fasterdata transfer while maintaining backwards compatibility with existing devices."

"The industry has affirmed the strong demand for higher through-put, for user-connectedperipherals and docks, by coming together to produce a quality SuperSpeed USB 10 Gbpsspecification," said Alex Peleg, Vice President, Intel Architecture Group. "Intel is fullycommitted to deliver on this request."

"While maintaining backward compatibility, USB continues to advance to meet customer'sgrowing need for higher speed data" said Roland Sperlich, TI Consumer and ComputingInterface Product Line Manager. "The 10 Gbps data rate allows designers across manyindustries to do more with a universal standard."

"In this multi-device world, the USB 3.1 updates will enable end-users to move contentacross devices quickly, conveniently and without worrying about compatibility," said EmileIanni, Corporate Vice President of Platform Solutions Engineering, AMD. "AMD thanks ourengineers as well as the other technology contributors for bringing to market robustinnovation that is designed to work seamlessly with new and existing solutions."